← Home Replies About Archive Photos On This Day Reading Also on Micro.blog

  • New post: Flannel Carolyn pyjamas

    Third time around for this pattern, but this time made in a cosy cotton flannel - with piping!

    → 4:36 PM, Dec 29

  • It’s time to play that game of skill and chance “Will My Bobbin Thread Run Out Before I Finish This Seam?”

    → 3:56 PM, Dec 22

  • I tried out a Fitness+ workout today. It was pretty good but I’ll probably stick with Sweat for the bulk of my workouts. Does anyone know if it’s possible to turn the music off but still hear the trainer? That puts me off.

    → 7:54 PM, Dec 17

  • New post: Switching to Selectrum for incremental narrowing in Emacs

    Probably one for the Emacs enthusiasts only! I dig into switching away from Ivy to Selectrum and friends.

    → 4:56 PM, Dec 6

  • Well, I guess I must need sleep. I woke up at 9am today which is very unusual for me, even when my alarm is off.

    → 11:36 AM, Dec 5

  • New post: Wiksten Haori jacket.

    My latest sewing project designed to stash-bust my fabric pile, boost my ‘sewjo’ and keep me warm and relatively well-presented on work calls.

    → 5:04 PM, Nov 22

  • New post: Obsidian

    I’ve moved from using org-roam to Obsidian to handle my academic and ‘thinking’ notes.

    → 1:13 PM, Nov 8

  • I was watching a pair of dik-dik while I ate my lunch today, and - thinking idly about today’s #mbnov word - it struck me that dik-dik must rarely have to stoop!

    → 7:20 PM, Nov 5

  • Exhaustion has been near all day. I’ve just battled through my workout for today and feel like calling it a night already. #mbnov

    → 6:42 PM, Nov 4

  • I can’t believe that I have only just got around to installing Drafts for macOS on my desktop machine. What did I do without it?

    → 7:37 PM, Nov 3

  • The word ‘astonish’ makes me instantly think of Philip Larkin’s poem ‘Coming’:

    A thrush sings,
    Laurel-surrounded
    In the deep bare garden
    Its fresh-peeled voice Astonishing the brickwork.

    #mbnov

    → 7:27 PM, Nov 3

  • Reading ‘Made from fresh apples, never from concentrate’ on a bottle’s label is always an excellent sign that you are getting a real cider. #mbnov

    → 7:37 PM, Nov 2

  • New post: Keeping track of the day

    In which I use the Apple Watch Solar Dial to help me stay connected to what the sun is doing.

    → 1:30 PM, Nov 1

  • There’s a dreary familiarity to the feeling of approaching the 4 week lockdown coming to England this week. We’ll get through it I guess, and it is certainly necessary, but I can’t help feeling weary of it all. #mbnov

    → 11:56 AM, Nov 1

  • I processed some of the photos I took on last Sunday’s walk in the Heart of England Forest. I’m fascinated by the glow of light on leaves, but it’s so hard to capture in a photograph! I’ll keep trying and probably keep failing.

    → 11:32 AM, Oct 18

  • I had my first day back at my fieldwork site in more than 6 months. Today was just catching up with what has changed (spoiler alert: a lot 🤣) and planning future work, but I was so happy to be working outside and not in my house!

    → 1:48 PM, Oct 15

  • Birmingham, UK / 2020-10-14 / 08:07 am

    On my daily walk I see natural beauty marred in places by human thoughtlessness.

    A Day In The Life: Micro.blog photo challenge

    → 7:45 AM, Oct 14

  • Walking the deer path

    This weekend, we went for another walk around the Heart of England Forest. Part of the route was on the Heart of England Way, a footpath that meanders around the area. In the field you can see in this photo, the footpath goes right up the middle of the ploughed area, and as we walked up it, I spotted trails of deer hoof prints all the way up. Further on, the hoof prints were still there. The deer apparently walk the footpaths too.

    That thrilled me: how lovely to think about groups of deer walking the same paths as us (perhaps in the early morning or during the night), seeing the same views as us through different eyes. Imagine being there at night and hearing the soft sounds of their feet on the earth and their breath in the night air?

    It struck me when looking at this panoramic photo that this actually might be similar to the way deer would see the same view, with their wide field of view.

    → 6:05 PM, Oct 12

  • 🔗 Down the ergonomic keyboard rabbit hole

    This makes me feel better about my keyboard layout experiments 🤓

    → 6:23 PM, Oct 10

  • Heart of England Forest

    2020 09 19 11 22 Gnarled oak

    A couple of weeks ago, Mr. Bsag and I drove over into Warwickshire and went for a walk in part of the Heart of England Forest. It’s an amazing project (started by the late Felix Dennis), planting new native trees to join up fragments of ancient woodland across Warwickshire and Worcestershire. It was the first time we had been out for a walk (beyond our immediate neighbourhood) for 6 months, and it was a literal and metaphorical breath of fresh air.

    It was a glorious, warm and sunny day, and we took our time, looking at plants, birds and fungi, and enjoying the view. I took some photos (pretty much the first I have taken with my real camera since our visit to Pembrokeshire last September), and I have posted a few here. It turns out that my photographic skills have got rusty in lockdown, so I need to get out more and take more photos!

    → 12:32 PM, Oct 4

  • New post: A shelf and keyboard mat for my desk

    I’ve been up to some DIY (sewing and rudimentary woodwork) to tweak my desk setup.

    → 5:19 PM, Oct 3

  • It’s a lovely golden morning this Monday. I’m grateful that I was able to get a walk in before work.

    → 7:27 AM, Sep 28

  • New post: Back to evil key bindings in Emacs

    Sometimes you just have to admit you’ve made a mistake.

    → 4:20 PM, Sep 26

  • This was tonight’s cider: a more traditional tannin-rich cider, but very good. Lovely artwork too.

    → 9:05 PM, Sep 25

  • New post: Using Tailwind CSS

    I’ve updated the design of my blog recently and been really impressed by how easy Tailwind CSS is to use.

    → 12:35 PM, Sep 13

  • I had this cider yesterday which was delicious. I think the name is a top class play on words too 👌

    → 8:31 AM, Sep 12

  • You might notice a slightly different look to my blog, as I’ve had a bit of a revamp using Tailwind CSS. It was fun and actually pretty easy once I got the hang of it. I’ll write about soon.

    → 6:00 PM, Sep 6

  • New post: Reverting to qwerty

    As the anonymous commenter predicted, using another keyboard layout trashed my ability to use a standard qwerty, so I had to revert.

    → 5:58 PM, Sep 6

  • Classic DeBryn moment:

    Strange: Choke on his own puke did he Doctor?

    DeBryn: [after a moment looking at Strange steadily] Been at the Keats again Sergeant?

    → 9:20 PM, Sep 4

  • Today I’ve been playing around with Tailwindcss to style the site. It takes a bit of getting used to, but it’s quite fun and much less frustrating than standard CSS.

    → 6:15 PM, Aug 30

  • New post: Comfort re-watching.

    In which I rave at length about the brilliance of Endeavour and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.

    → 4:11 PM, Aug 23

  • New post: Advising Emacs

    In which I talk about my most recent Emacs tinkering adventures.

    → 10:52 AM, Aug 18

  • Where has howdoi been all my life? (Hat tip to Brett Terpstra who finds all the best command line tools)

    → 12:44 PM, Aug 16

  • Sigh. My Mac mini has died. Luckily it is less than a year old so under warranty but I could really do without the disruption of repair. 😒

    → 8:04 PM, Jul 23

  • Thanks to Kottke, I have just found out about the musical mash-up genre of ‘bardcore’, and now this cover of Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit in waltz time, medieval style, is my new favourite thing.

    → 6:16 PM, Jul 21

  • New post: Confessions of a reluctant exerciser

    In which I marvel at the fact that I’m doing actual regular exercise.

    → 7:53 PM, Jul 20

  • Mr. Bsag and I just collaboratively cut my hair (him: the length at the back; me: the fringe). Amazingly, it isn’t terrible! I don’t think we’ll be opening a salon any time soon, but it’s pretty acceptable.

    → 7:00 PM, Jul 13

  • I’ve just made another couple of face masks from scraps left after I made my birthday shirt. And yes - I am planning to wear a matching shirt and mask at some point!

    → 1:42 PM, Jul 12

  • Today was the last day of an online conference that I have been attending all this week. Since most participants were based in Indonesia, it was on Jakarta time: 2am-8am in my time zone. If you’ll excuse me, I think I need to sleep for a week.

    → 10:16 AM, Jul 10

  • New post: Linen Persephone Sailor trousers

    My latest sewn garment.

    → 12:19 PM, Jul 5

  • New post: Portrait of a Lady on Fire

    Apparently, I can’t stop thinking about this film and had more to say about it.

    → 5:32 PM, Jun 21

  • Portrait of a Lady on Fire, 2019 - ★★★★★

    What an extraordinary film. I don’t think I’ve watched one with this level of quiet intensity for ages. The cinematography is sublime, the performances by all the leads are perfect examples of how to convey more with less, and how refreshing to watch a film in which the majority of screen time is carried (expertly) by four women alone.

    → 11:34 AM, Jun 21

  • New post: Re-mapping my keyboard and re-wiring my brain

    In which I relate moving to the BEAKL15 keyboard layout, and swapping from Vim keybindings in Emacs to the Boon package.

    → 1:48 PM, Jun 14

  • New post: The joy of the usual route

    In which I talk about my daily lockdown walk.

    → 6:18 PM, Jun 7

  • The Vast of Night, 2019 - ★★★

    I really wanted to love this, but ended up just liking it. The middle is tense and exciting but it is bookended by what feels like filler. It has the feeling of style over substance.

    → 10:48 PM, Jun 6

  • I’ve been rewatching the 1995 TV adaptation of ‘Pride and Prejudice’ with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle. I had forgotten just how much time Firth spends just smouldering in the first few episodes. He doesn’t have many lines, but his smouldering is world class.

    → 9:36 PM, May 21

  • Extra Ordinary, 2019 - ★★★★★

    Father Ted meets the Exorcist! The emphasis is firmly on the comedy in this comedy/horror, but it was exactly the laugh we needed this weekend. Great characters and some fabulous lines, with a 1980s aesthetic that hit the spot brilliantly. If you are a fan of Garth Marenghi’s Dark Place, you’ll probably like this too.

    → 11:54 AM, May 17

  • Violet 📷🌈

    → 11:15 AM, May 17

  • Indigo bluebells. 📷🌈

    → 12:42 PM, May 16

  • Blue. From last year. 📷🌈

    → 5:20 PM, May 15

  • New oak leaves are a fabulous fresh green colour. 📷🌈

    → 5:54 PM, May 14

  • Yellow 📷🌈

    → 6:33 PM, May 13

  • Orange nasturtiums 📷🌈

    → 6:19 PM, May 12

  • Red post box. 📷 🌈

    → 4:14 PM, May 11

  • For it might be the mothering of your sweet soul
    If you open your eyes and see
    That the life of a man it comes with little plan
    It flourishes like a flower
    As tender in the heart into which you’re born
    So cherish your every hour
    — Sam Lee, “The Moon Shines Bright” 💬

    → 12:47 PM, May 10

  • “I meant,” said Ipslore bitterly, “what is there in this world that truly makes living worthwhile?” Death thought about it. “CATS, he said eventually. CATS ARE NICE.” — Terry Pratchett, Sourcery 💬

    → 6:36 PM, May 9

  • Hello Earth
    Hello Earth
    With just one hand held up high
    I can blot you out
    Out of sight
    Peek-a-boo
    Peek-a-boo, Little Earth

    — Kate Bush, “Hello Earth” 💬

    → 2:25 PM, May 8

  • “Time, not important. Only life is important.” — Mondoshawan, The Fifth Element. 💬

    → 3:02 PM, May 7

  • “[…] the great Tree of Life, which fills with its dead and broken branches the crust of the earth, and covers the surface with its ever-branching and beautiful ramifications.” — Charles Darwin, On the Origin of Species 💬

    → 5:14 PM, May 6

  • “Supposing a tree fell down, Pooh, when we were underneath it?” “Supposing it didn’t,” said Pooh after careful thought. Piglet was comforted by this. — A. A. Milne 💬

    → 6:16 PM, May 5

  • “How long the same things? Surely I will yawn, I will sleep, I will eat, I will be thirsty, I will be cold, I will be hot. Is there no end?” — Seneca 💬 (quoted in a Guardian article about boredom)

    → 4:55 PM, May 4

  • New post: Building a Raspberry Pi Roon endpoint

    My fun weekend project!

    → 6:51 PM, Apr 28

  • I made a floor pouffe yesterday from a free Closet Case Pattern. It is designed to be made from those scraps that are too small to use for clothing but too big to throw away, and then filled with smaller scraps!

    → 12:10 PM, Apr 26

  • Just had breakfast listening to a duet between Hildegard of Bingen (Medieval plain chant, on Radio 3) and a blackbird (in our garden, through the open door). Bliss. I recommending starting every day like that if you have cooperative local wildlife.

    → 6:26 AM, Apr 22

  • New post: Extending org-roam

    In which I create a monstrous pile of scripts in order to make notes on journal articles in org-roam.

    → 11:54 AM, Apr 16

  • I came across a wren on my walk today. Its song was as sweet and sharp as lemon sherbet. The unexpected force with which its tiny body punched the air into explosions of sound knocked all the stale indoor air from my own lungs and replaced it with cool spring freshness.

    → 2:57 PM, Apr 15

  • Blossom.

    → 7:14 AM, Apr 11

  • New post: Making things in isolation

    In which I sew an incredibly bright shirt to celebrate my birthday.

    → 4:49 PM, Mar 29

  • Ah, my old friend Fraycheck (aka ‘Rafelstop’) - you save my sewing bacon again when I get a bit wayward with the rotary cutter! 😬

    → 12:15 PM, Mar 28

  • This fox was enjoying a patch is sun in our garden this morning, while sparrows shouted at it from a nearby bush.

    → 5:11 PM, Mar 26

  • From my one allowed outdoor exercise walk per day: I noticed that the willow catkins are just starting to emerge. They caught the low sun beautifully.

    → 10:29 AM, Mar 25

  • I’ve been trying to get two PhD students working overseas emergency flights. Things are moving so fast that I had a lot of drama before 6am trying to book new flight for one student 1.5 hours before takeoff 😰. He boarded that flight. Now to worry about the connection…

    → 8:12 AM, Mar 24

  • I’m going to make the brightest, most colourful shirt I can this weekend. When we are all able to mingle again, I may need to hand out sunglasses 😎.

    → 10:33 AM, Mar 21

  • One of my colleagues has informed me that it’s time to knock off work and deliver her food.

    → 4:58 PM, Mar 19

  • Number of times my cats have video-bombed a work video conference this week: 5.

    → 7:02 AM, Mar 19

  • Getting in the groove with a knitting pattern

    After making a hat with the brioche knitting technique, I reckoned that I had enough yarn left over to make a pair of matching(ish) mittens. After searching for a pattern which would work with my yarn and was interesting but not too difficult, I settled on The Geoscientist’s Mittens by Sabine Kastner.

    I’ve made a start now, and after a few minor errors, I think it is going relatively smoothly (though maybe ask me again when I get to the thumbs!). I always find starting a pattern really difficult. For the first few rows, I feel like I’m guessing about whether the stitches are right. It always looks like a complete mess, and it is only after a few rows as the pattern builds up that you can begin to see that — for example — you are going to knit the single orange stitches on a ‘b’ round and slip the blue ones. Repetition makes this structure much more evident, both physically (in the knitted fabric) and mentally (as you remember the pattern of stitches from last time).

    At this point, you can start to use the pattern as more of a reminder than a rope on to which to you cling for dear life, and the knitting becomes a lot more enjoyable!

    → 6:27 PM, Mar 8

  • Micro.blog 2020 February Photoblogging Challenge

    I didn’t get myself organised enough to participate in the November 30 day blogging challenge, so when @macgenie announced the February Photoblogging Challenge, I was determined to give it a go.

    I posted my 30th photo today and got my pin, and I’ve really enjoyed participating. February in a northern temperate region is a bit of a challenge for photography, as it is not properly light when I leave for work and nearly dark when I get home. I ended up using a mixture of photos taken on the day and those from my archive. They certainly haven’t always been my best work, and on occasion I had to scrabble around to find something (anything!) relevant to the prompt word, but it has been an enjoyable challenge.

    Each day, I went around with the prompt word in my head, looking for things that might fit. As a consequence, I think I have looked at things more this month — and in a more creative way — than I usually do, and that has made it all worthwhile. I’ve also really enjoyed looking at other people’s photos and seeing how they have interpreted the prompts. Thanks to @macgenie and @manton for setting us a fun challenge!

    → 5:22 PM, Mar 1

  • Vision. Whenever things get a bit stressful, I have a vision of this lovely walk and feel a bit calmer. 📷

    → 2:17 PM, Mar 1

  • Leap. I’m so glad I made the leap into sewing my own clothes 6 years ago. It has been an exciting and creatively rewarding process. I still remember the thrill of sewing this - my first pocket! 📷

    → 12:06 PM, Feb 29

  • Below. Below the spouts of the portafilter is where all the good stuff happens. 📷

    → 5:52 PM, Feb 28

  • Together. They still sometimes sleep mirroring each other like this. 📷

    → 5:05 PM, Feb 27

  • Escape. As a vim bindings user (in Doom Emacs) I’m grateful my keyboard has an escape key. 📷

    → 5:38 PM, Feb 26

  • Hurdle. It’s a low one, but designed to keep motorbikes out of the green space, not always successfully! 📷

    → 1:02 PM, Feb 25

  • Double. Two TWSBI Go fountain pens. I love these little things. 📷

    → 6:51 PM, Feb 24

  • Station. Lifeboat station near St David’s, Wales. 📷

    → 1:37 PM, Feb 23

  • New post: DEVONthink Pro 3.

    I’ve come back to DT after a time away and I am loving my newly-found ability to actually find stuff!

    → 1:26 PM, Feb 23

  • Finished brioche hat

    IMG 0355

    At the weekend, I finished knitting a hat using brioche knitting. I practiced initially by making a fingerless mitt, but this was my first proper item. This style of knitting creates a double faced fabric, because you knit each row twice, slipping alternate stitches with a yarn over on one round and then knitting (or purling) them on the next round.

    I’ve actually found it easier doing two colour brioche as used here, as it is a visible reminder about which round you are on, and makes it easier to follow the structure of the stitch. It also makes a reversible item, as you can see below (this is theoretically the inside). It also makes a very warm and squishy fabric, particularly using merino yarn as I have here.

    IMG 0356

    I made quite a few mistakes with this hat. In fact, I had knitted a good 7 cm before I realised that I had made a very visible error, and because it is so difficult to fix these things with brioche, I just ripped it all back to the plain ribbing and started again.

    I’m pretty pleased with the end result though. When you wear it, the fabric stretches and the orange inner ribbing peeks through the outer blue ribs.

    → 5:08 PM, Feb 22

  • Spectacle. My first pair of varifocals. I’m getting on with them much better than I expected. 📷

    → 12:26 PM, Feb 22

  • Progress. Towards home. 📷

    → 4:20 PM, Feb 21

  • Scale. 📷

    → 8:26 AM, Feb 20

  • Space. This is my space for the next 2 nights while I attend a workshop. 📷

    → 4:38 PM, Feb 19

  • Oppose. A bit more lateral today as I was struggling a bit! 📷

    → 4:46 PM, Feb 18

  • Cool. Isambard Kingdom Brunel on a Brompton is cool. 📷

    → 2:07 PM, Feb 17

  • Rest. Cats achieve Olympic levels of rest. 📷

    → 3:00 PM, Feb 16

  • Balance. Carreg Samson, Pembrokeshire. It has apparently been balanced like that for about 5000 years. 📷

    Pembrokeshire 180905123837

    → 1:20 PM, Feb 15

  • Warmth. There’s nothing like the warmth of your mother. Especially if she is very hairy 😍 📷

    → 5:29 PM, Feb 14

  • Rise. Holt, Norfolk. 📷

    → 11:01 AM, Feb 13

  • Attachment. 📷

    → 1:42 PM, Feb 12

  • Plain. I didn’t think through my lunch. These crispbreads are nice, but a bit plain (and dry!) without some cream cheese or veggie pate on them. 📷

    → 5:43 PM, Feb 11

  • Sign. The signs are that I am anticipating a wet and windy day of field work! 📷

    → 9:01 AM, Feb 10

  • We lost a roof panel on our “conservatory” to the high winds. I put it in quotes because it’s a really shoddily-built thing, so I’m not surprised.

    → 10:33 PM, Feb 9

  • Ex Machina, 2014 - ★★★★½

    This was far better than I expected it to be. Tense, engrossing, subtle in places, it is a film about truth, lies, trust, power and control as much as AI. The effects are stunning but not showy and seem perfectly believable.

    I’m keen to watch again to see if my sympathies for the characters shift knowing how it ends.

    → 1:10 PM, Feb 9

  • Lull. Waiting for a lull in the storm while listening to Welsh folk music. 📷

    → 11:46 AM, Feb 9

  • Contrast. The white of this harbour marker in Porthgain really contrasts with the dark rocks. 📷 2019 09 08 11 44 Porthgain harbour marker

    → 1:18 PM, Feb 8

  • Above. Looking up is often quite rewarding. 📷

    → 12:34 PM, Feb 7

  • Plant. Plants make urban life a little more bearable, even when they are sleeping in winter. 📷

    → 5:34 PM, Feb 6

  • Hide. This is from quite a few years ago when Bianca could still squeeze underneath this Ikea step. She can still hide under there, but she has to lift it first 🤣. 📷

    → 6:43 PM, Feb 5

  • Spot. I genuinely spotted the flower on this in our front garden as I was leaving this morning. 📷

    → 12:21 PM, Feb 4

  • Reflect. 📷

    → 12:32 PM, Feb 3

  • Sight. Bella’s got great sight and beautiful eyes. 📷

    → 1:32 PM, Feb 2

  • New post: Further adventures in org-mode.

    In which I create a complicated workflow for a new role and try to replicate Roam in org-mode.

    → 1:09 PM, Feb 2

  • Open. Well, not quite, but I am willing this bud to open so that I get some winter colour. 📷

    → 6:33 PM, Feb 1

  • The women who sewed space suits

    Hey Sisters, Sew Sisters

    I’ve just listened to this fascinating documentary produced by the BBC World Service about the women who sewed space suits for NASA from the Apollo missions onwards. They also sewed components for the spacecraft, such as insulation panels and heat shields.

    It is a fascinating story. Many of the women were recruited from the lingerie industry, as they had the precision sewing skills needed for this highly technical application. The lives of astronauts literally depended on their ability to sew strong and precise seams — sometimes with tiny seam allowances — so there was an incredible pressure on them to get it right.

    → 12:26 PM, Feb 1

  • I’ve had a fun day tweaking Emacs and scratching a few itches in my set up.

    → 6:47 PM, Jan 25

  • New post: Tweed waistcoat

    My latest sewing adventure, drafting my own waistcoat pattern from a sloper.

    → 1:29 PM, Jan 19

  • Oh, Mark Gatiss’ Dracula has been fantastic. I’ve had to hide behind a cushion for a lot of horror-y bits, but I’ve still loved it. So many Easter eggs too! It has somehow maintained a perfect balance between genuinely scary, funny, profound, geeky, feminist, gothic camp.🦇

    → 10:47 PM, Jan 3
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